Art Aronson

This is an 8* on BOSTON

Boston has lost two in a row and was just shut out 3-0 at Columbus on Tuesday. But each of those two losses came on the road. Tuesday was their first time being shut out this season. The Bruins return home Thursday and don’t be fooled by the number of defeats (11) they’ve suffered here in Boston. Nine of those 11 losses have come after regulation. Their two regulation losses are the fewest at home by any team in the league. Now it won’t be easy beating Pittsburgh, even in Beantown. But look for the Bruins to do it. We know the Penguins have won four straight, but they’ve still given up 12 goals in doing so. Three of the four wins came by a score of 4-3, two of them coming beyond regulation. The Penguins record on the road is only 12-7-2. The fact that Pittsburgh scored seven goals on Tuesday (Crosby’s first game back) has a bearing on both teams. The Penguins are 2-6 after scoring five or more times in their last game. The Bruins are 8-1 when facing a team that just scored at least five times. Even without goaltender Tuukka Rask, the hosts win this battle of premier teams. Play on BOSTON

AAA

This is an 8* on BUFFALO +1.5

Dallas is in a lot better position than Buffalo right. Coming off an overtime win in Colorado, the Stars have won seven of eight and have 58 points, which has them second in the Central Division. Buffalo has just 49 points and is 5th in the Atlantic. As it stands now, the Sabres would miss the playoffs for a ninth straight season, the longest active drought in the sport. But there’s still a lot of games left and they aren’t ready to pack in it. It’s been two straight commanding wins with nine goals scored. Dallas hasn’t been nearly as dominant as you might think for a team that’s won seven of its last eight games. Two of their last three wins have been by one goal, so we like the +1.5 quite a bit here. They have not scored more than three times in any of the last four games. They actually trailed 2-0 at Colorado on Tuesday and were outshot 43-30. This is the Stars first game back after a long West Coast trip, so travel fatigue could be a factor. Buffalo has played a slightly tougher schedule and is 10-6-3 vs. Western Conference teams. Play Buffalo on the Puck Line (+1.5)

AAA

This is a 10* on DREXEL

Drexel has won three of four. They just prevailed at James Madison 78-71 as a 3.5-point underdog. Tonight they host an Elon team that is also coming off a win, but the difference there is that the Phoenix had lost six in a row prior to that win. The win came against probably the worst team in the CAA, UNC Wilmington. The past two years have not been kind to Elon when they are off a conference win. They are 3-10 SU and ATS in that role. It sure was nice for them that UNC Wilmington made only 28.8% of its shots on Saturday. Drexel has a 46.8 FG% at home. Elon has covered the spread in five of the last six games, but isn’t getting nearly enough points here. They are 0-8 SU on the road while shooting 37% in those games. Drexel is 18-3 SU the last 21 times it has been favored, 5-0 this year, and should cover this number with room to spare. Play on DREXEL

AAA

This is a 10* on the OVER

Marshall was going Over quite a bit at the start of the year. Through the first 11 games, the Over was 8-3. But since then, scoring has curtailed some with the Under hitting in four of the last five. Speaking of Unders, that’s the way Charlotte’s previous six games have all gone. But we look for a different type game Thursday in Conference USA. There has been some unusually poor shooting in Charlotte games recently. Both they and their opponents have shot below 39%. That’s pretty incredible and something unlikely to continue. Marshall is still scoring 77.3 points/game at home, so look for them to score more than Charlotte’s recent opponents have. The Thundering Herd are coming off a road loss to UAB where they scored 50 points and were held to 33.3%. A return to Huntington will get them going again. The Over is 15-8 for Charlotte in the 49ers previous 23 games with a total of 130 to 139.5. Play OVER Charlotte-Marshall

AAA

This is a 10* on the OVER

Golden State hopes to avoid a 10-game losing streak tonight as it hosts Denver. Two nights ago, here at home, the Warriors lost by 27 against Dallas. It was the second straight game where they gave up over 120 points, but the fifth straight game that still went Under. The Nuggets went Under for a fourth straight time last night when they beat Charlotte 100-86. Look for these Under streaks to end tonight though. Golden State obviously isn’t playing good defense right now. Nor have they really played much defense in this lost, injury-riddled season that they are having. They are giving up 113.2 points/game. The Over is 25-11 the last 36 times Denver has played here. Facing a second game in two nights, the Nuggets may not be as focused as they usually are defensively. The Over is also 6-1 their last seven road games. Their last three games were all at home and they give up substantially more points when not in the Mile Hile City. It’s not like Denver games have been staying Under the total by many points eithers. Two of the last three were within three points of the number set by the oddsmakers. This one makes it Over. Play OVER Denver-Golden State

AAA